Seems Like A Good Day For
The Stoop
Birch, CNC, Nylon Webbing, Silkscreen
2011
In many cities the stoop is not just an architectural typology, but also an institution. Within a simple construction, just a series of steps leading to the front door, acts as a place for interaction, relaxation, observance, a micro government for the block where people congregate for news and gossip. Seems Like A Good Day For The Stoop attempts to examine and recreate that phenomenon, detaching the stoop from the building. I designed a pressure fitted portable stoop consisting of 20 pieces, no tools needed. Within 10 minutes a fully functional stoop can be assembled indoors or outdoors.
Is the building essential for a series of steps to attain the properties of a stoop? Is it the location or the people inhabiting the structure that create the environment? It must be a mixture of both; an ownership and history of the architecture must exist. Therefore a portable stoop, a roaming community center, inherently will not succeed without that ownership, a known and established community.
A literal ownership has been assigned to the 20 pieces of the portable stoop. Every piece has been given to one family member or friend as a gift and social contract, that when needed the pieces will be temporarily returned to reassemble the stoop. With every piece numbered and assigned the parts are shipped to each participant with a limited edition print detailing the project outlines and the 19 others involved. Shipping the pieces inevitably adds the additional layer of history. Without any crate or box the parts are mailed as is, so shipping labels, dirt, marks, and handprints will begin to give a history and life to the stoop as it moves back and forth between itʼs owners.
Is the building essential for a series of steps to attain the properties of a stoop? Is it the location or the people inhabiting the structure that create the environment? It must be a mixture of both; an ownership and history of the architecture must exist. Therefore a portable stoop, a roaming community center, inherently will not succeed without that ownership, a known and established community.
A literal ownership has been assigned to the 20 pieces of the portable stoop. Every piece has been given to one family member or friend as a gift and social contract, that when needed the pieces will be temporarily returned to reassemble the stoop. With every piece numbered and assigned the parts are shipped to each participant with a limited edition print detailing the project outlines and the 19 others involved. Shipping the pieces inevitably adds the additional layer of history. Without any crate or box the parts are mailed as is, so shipping labels, dirt, marks, and handprints will begin to give a history and life to the stoop as it moves back and forth between itʼs owners.